


Three Kings: Noctis

by pheonixgate1



Series: Nos Gerere [2]
Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Addendum to a Series, Ardyn Being Only Slightly-Better, Casual Use of Allergy Meds, MUST READ FIRST: Nos Gerere, Poor Talcott, Ravus Being Ravus, The Fantastic Frenemy Voyage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-02 10:20:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,403
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23849578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pheonixgate1/pseuds/pheonixgate1
Summary: “You get a good deal on that bilge water back there?”
Series: Nos Gerere [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1635643
Kudos: 8





	Three Kings: Noctis

The car lurches to a stop, probably a little harder than intended but Talcott’s white knuckled grip on the steering wheel says otherwise. The King’s Aide plasters a fake-smile on his face, which looks more than a little manic and addresses the car at large.

“Ok. Everyone out. Let’s stretch our legs, go to the bathroom, go shopping. -I’m going to top us off.”

Noctis, who had pretty much slept the whole way thus far, stretches before complying. He should probably offer to take over some of the drive, considering the tension in the car is obviously stressing the kid out. Right now, Ardyn is in the front with Talcott and Ravus is in the back with him. If not for the incidental background noise provided by the radio, it would just be a horrible awkward silence you could cut with a knife.

He eyes the convenience store. Banks and financial institutions are still getting on their feet, so the Crown-issued Credit Card that Talcott has will only work in major cities and places close to Insomnia itself. Noctis had quite a bit of gil stored in his Armiger at some point, but for reasons he doesn’t understand, that’s beyond his reach now.

By some weird twist of fate, he at least he has his phone. Not a great trade-off but he’ll take what he can get.

Thankfully, Ignis had identified that particular problem early on and had given them some starter money; split evenly between them. It won’t last forever and they’ll likely have to take up odd jobs once it runs out, but it’s enough to buy a travel pack of allergy meds and a bottle of water.

Once more outside, he spots Ravus looking over the weapons at the hunter shop. Ardyn is puttering around the tiny outdoor café, talking to the man running it.

He sidles up to Talcott whose face is pinched and unhappy as he tends to the car.

“Hey. Why don’t you let me drive for a bit? You can sit in the back with Ravus and take a nap. He won’t bother you.”

The younger man sighs heavily.

“I can keep going. -I don’t think I can sleep anyway. But thanks for the offer.”

Noctis waits until he’s done, then presses a single blister pack of the medicine into his hand and passes him a bottle of water.

“Normally I wouldn’t suggest medicating but that will make you drowsy. -It’s just antihistamine. You ever take that before?”

The other man nods, staring at the item in his hand.

“Yeah so take like a half of that and see how tired you get. If it doesn’t do the trick take the other half. We’re still hours from Lestallum, so get some rest. I can handle those two.”

Duty wars with self-preservation Talcott’s face. He decides to tip the scales a bit.

“I know what you’re thinking, but you won’t disappoint him. -Not like this. If he were here, he’d be doing the same thing, only with magic. Look, it’s cool if you still don’t want to, but I think some distance from all this would do you some good. -Just saying.”

The King’s Aide sighs and pops the blister pack. Doesn’t bother breaking the pill, he just tosses it down and drinks about half the water in the bottle in one go.

“Hah. You’re the best. -Have I told you you’re the best?”

He smirks as he takes the keys.

“That goes without saying.”

He gives the younger man’s shoulder a squeeze before the other decides to check out the convenience store himself. As he waits by the car, he notices Ardyn buying three repurposed bottles of what looks like brackish water from the café stand attendant. He only catches a glimpse of them before they disappear into the ancient man’s armiger—the sight of which still gives Noctis a pang of jealousy.

The way he held them in his arms, close to his chest piques his curiosity. So far, Ardyn has shown zero preference for anything in general. Not food. Not drink. Not fashion. Modern music is just noise to him. Currently he’s been passing the time by reading boring, dry medical publications. Noctis tried to read a bit once, when the other had been occupied, but had failed to get through a single sentence.

They eye each other as Ardyn approaches the car, his dealings done. While everyone is technically under a shaky truce, Noctis doesn’t harbor any enmity towards the ancient man. Not anymore. A great many truths were revealed on the other side, including a sliver of insight into the man’s seemingly endless suffering.

Ardyn, on the other hand, still looks at him like he’s waiting for the other shoe to drop. He raises a brow as the other pauses at the passenger door.

“You get a good deal on that bilge water back there?”

This makes the other man blink at him.

“Bilge wat—oh you poor, ignorant _fool_. That was _cider_. Possibly the most sublime example this world has to offer.” He scoffs. “Bilge water, he says. -Just for that, you’ll not get even a _taste_.”

Noctis looks back at the café stand. Ardyn follows his gaze and smirks.

“Oh, you’ll find I bought out his entire stock. -Though I’m sure he has other offerings to tempt your uneducated palate.”

Oh ho _ho_. Game on.

He cranes his neck around. Ravus is still looking through the hunter’s inventory, frowning. Talcott hasn’t left the convenience store. The other party members confirmed, he turns back to Ardyn who is now leaning against the car; smarminess settling over him like a mantle.

“Alright. I’m interested. -What’s it going to take to get a bottle of your glorified apple juice?”

The Doctor hums to himself as he considers.

“I’m fairly certain there’s nothing you have that I want. Perhaps you should make an offer.”

Noctis thinks this over.

“Well whatever it is will need to be quick, unless we want Ravus hissing like a rattlesnake in the backseat every time we say something civil. Hmmm. -How about this? You asked me something back in Zegnautus. It was the last thing I remember you saying. Something about how I’d never guess who ‘Izunia’ was. -If I guess correctly, can I have some of your cider?”

Ardyn frowns. He can tell that he’s weighing the fact that Noctis has met his family. People that were connected to him. But strangely enough, the flailing Noctis had guessed the answer to that seconds after the then-Chancellor had asked it, for a very specific reason.

“Trivia is it? Very well, I’ll bite. Tell me the origin of that name and I’ll share some of my bounty with you. -But only some. Information I already know isn’t worth an entire _bottle_.”

Without preamble, Noctis answers.

“It was your mother’s maiden name. -And no, I didn’t find that out by talking to her. I knew it back then.”

He knows he’s right, but the other man doesn’t acknowledge it. Instead he asks:

“And however did you guess that, if not by speaking to my Lady Mother?”

Noctis grins.

“Ah, I’m afraid that’s bottle-level intel. If you still want to play by the glass, that’s fine too. I know I’m right. -Let’s have a toast later.”

Ardyn squints at him, torn between wanting to know and wanting to keep the charade going.

“Fine, _brat_. A bottle it is. Now tell me how you guessed such a thing as the Crystal consumed you. Surely there were other, more pressing things on your mind at the time.”

Oh there had been. But the off-hand comment had unexpectedly struck a chord in him. An old, sour one.

_You’ll never find them, son. They don’t exist. -All that matters is that she was your mother… That I loved her._

“Once, when I was little, I asked my dad about my grandparents. My _maternal_ grandparents, because I had already learned the ones on my father’s side were dead. -This was before the attack, when it was just me and Ignis and our nanny, Marissa.”

Noctis lets the memory of her death roll over him. He’d been huddled under the protection of her body when she’d been eviscerated. Cut in half so completely that the claw had gone into his back and damaged his spine. He’d barely been eight years old when he’d found out what death felt, sounded and smelled like. Trapped under her corpse, all he’d been able to see was the floor and the dark creep of blood.

He can only thank the gods Ignis had been in tutoring at the time.

“Naturally, the concept of grandparents sounded awesome to someone who’s only parent was gone all the time. I wanted in on it. So I asked him. He kept… putting me off. I’d go to him and he’d distract me and later I’d get so mad…”

Noctis remembers this is when things started to get awkward between him and his father.

“Things got… pretty bad after Altissa. Ignis helped but I was even more determined to find out if I had other family because I was messed up over what happened and dad… was either never there or distant enough that it didn’t matter if he was. I kept at it, and finally he sort-of snapped. Said some things you probably shouldn’t say to a traumatized kid; later I could see it for grief but at the time it was just proof that he didn’t care.”

He sighs. Even though it was years ago, even though he knows the truth of it—it still feels heavy. Like a weight in his chest.

“A bunch of stuff happened. I tried to run away. Ignis stopped me. Said he’d look into the family thing for me on the low. Thankfully he asked his uncle for help and he explained the shitty law that had made it impossible for me to contact or even know the other side of my family. -The same law that only records the first names of people who marry into the line1.”

At this, Ardyn interjects.

“And you inferred my mother’s name from _that_? You realize that practice was simply extra protection for the families who aligned with House Caelum. So they would not become targets for those who would see us fall.”

He frowns. That make sense, in a way. No one had bothered to explain the particulars to him back then.

“Yeah. It was obvious you got the name from somewhere, and when you said I’d never guess it, I knew that was why. Because it wouldn’t have been recorded. Because when you marry into the Caelums, you basically throw away whatever life you had before. -Even Ignis had it like that. I mean, he was allowed to contact his family. Technically he could even see them, except he never had time."

This upsets him more than it should. He knows the older man had tried to contact his parents after the Empire's initial siege of Insomnia. Hadn’t gotten through. Noctis had never heard anything else about it but he’s pretty sure they’re dead and Ignis will never know how or why.

He glances up and Ravus is walking back to the car, empty-handed. He sees the two of them and his neutral frown slides into scowl.

“And that’s our cue to wrap this up. Thank you for choosing Auto Noctis. We ask that you keep hands and feet in the car at all times and buckle up, buttercup.”

He slides into the Driver’s seat and a few beats later, Ardyn settles next to him on the passenger side with what sounds suspiciously like a chuff. A few minutes pass and Ravus slithers into the back like a wraith, obviously unimpressed with the local selection. He doesn’t know how to tell the other man that his sword is in his armiger. He’d picked it up after they had destroyed what was left of him with the intention of returning it to Altissa so it could be laid to rest in Ravus’ stead.

He figures its better if the other continues to assume its lost to history instead of lost to his defunct dimensional storage.

As they wait for Talcott to finish up, he tilts his head back to address their most volatile passenger.

“They’ll have better gear in Lestallum, if you’re looking for a sword.”

The figure in the back scoffs.

“Highly doubtful. How you survived long enough to get to Altissa the _first_ time is a miracle considering the workmanship I’ve seen so far. -Perhaps we’ll find a stick somewhere that will do some actual _damage_.”

Noctis sees the opening and glares hard at Ardyn who has seen it as well but unlike him, has no compunction about offering to helpfully remove the stick from _his ass_. Thankfully the other merely smirks before finding his periodical and flipping to a dog-eared page.

He lets out a slow breath. How did Talcott survive getting even _this_ far?

*

Less than two miles down the road, Noctis sees a sign tacked to a faded Wiz Chocobo Ranch billboard that declares them NOW OPEN. He nearly makes a u-turn in the middle of the highway.

Later, he thinks. Once he meets who Ignis and Cor wanted him to meet in Lestallum, he’ll make sure they stop there. He can’t let Prompto live down missing the Fantastic Frenemy Voyage from _Hell_.

By then, he might even come up with a good reason for stopping.

THE END

1 There was a lot of controversy over that line (“You’ll never guess who Izunia was.”) and to me it was obvious that Izunia is Ardyn’s mother’s name, though I’m not sure if that’s actually stated in the Ultimania or not. In Feudal Japan, it was common practice to only list the first name of female relatives or wives in the family records with only male names recorded in their entirety. Which just sucks, but that’s how it be.

I’ve tried to weave that into Lucian history in a similar manner, because I never did understand why no one’s parents mattered in the game—not Ignis, not Prompto, not even Gladio or Iris. -And especially their mothers who were all either dead or just… not there or mentioned at all. (Ug, don’t get me started on this game’s huge aversion to women who aren’t sexual/romantic objects).

**Author's Note:**

> Streamlined Nos Gerere (the first story) a little bit. Nothing story-wise has changed but I have edited the chapter summaries to have quotes from that chapter instead of my insipid ramblings, so the presentation is nicer. For the most part, end notes remain the same--as do the notes in the starting chapter (since those are tied to the full story summary), though some notes that referenced irrelevant things (like story length) have been removed.


End file.
